OUR OPINION: Score one for American ingenuity

A police car and an SUV crashed into each other and the driver of the SUV walked away without a scratch and the officer was listed in good condition. One reason the men fared so well in such a bad accident was that their vehicles had the latest safety equipment.

The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA

Writer

Posted Apr. 3, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Apr 3, 2013 at 3:03 AM

Posted Apr. 3, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Apr 3, 2013 at 3:03 AM

» Social News

A police car and an SUV crashed into each other last Tuesday in West Bridgewater, and the driver of the SUV, Ciro Tropeano, walked away without a scratch. Police Sgt. Gregory Ames was taken to a Boston hospital where he was later listed in good condition.

One reason the men fared so well in such a bad accident was that their vehicles, one a Ford, the other a Chevy, had the latest safety equipment. If people looked at the vehicles after the crash, they would have asked when the funerals would be held. Instead, Tropeano was saved by the air bag in his driver’s-side door and Ames likely survived because just about all cars today are built with front ends that are designed to absorb most of the impact.

Police said the collision occurred when Ames was responding to a call on Manley Street and when he attempted to pass the SUV, it suddenly turned left. The police car hit the driver’s-side door. The police cruiser is now a wreck and the SUV, a Chevrolet Avalanche, doesn’t look much better.

Now, a bit of history:

The air bag was invented in 1951 by American engineer John W. Hetrick and first offered to the public as an option on some General Motors cars in 1973. At the time, few people even wore seat belts. Cars had to be designed and built to save drivers and passengers from themselves. Now, all new cars have air bags and most people wear seat belts.

Had this accident occurred just 15 or 20 years ago, the results might not have been so positive. Research has shown that more people than ever wear seat belts and seek cars with air bags on the side, not just in front. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said a 2006 study showed that deaths were reduced 37 percent for people struck on the side of their cars. Standard air bags can reduce deaths 26 percent.

The lesson here is not about history, but about being careful every time you get in a car. Wear your seat belt, make sure the air bag light goes on to show they’re working. Pay attention to the road – and whatever you do, don’t make a left turn when a police car is passing you on the left.

As Ames’ co-worker Lt. Victor Flaherty said, the difference between life and death on the road can be “a game of inches.”